Where to Find Grief Support: Groups, Counseling and Crisis Lines

You can find grief support through crisis lines, free peer support groups, grief counselors and therapists, and camps or groups made for grieving children and teens. Start with what you need most right now. If you feel unsafe or can't cope, call or text 988 at any hour. In an emergency, call 911.

Every listing below was checked on its own website on October 18, 2026. Programs, hours and costs change, so confirm the details before you go. A listing here is not an endorsement, and none of these organizations is a partner of the Amin Foundation.

If you're in crisis right now

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (opens in a new tab). Call or text 988, or chat at chat.988lifeline.org (opens in a new tab). It is free, confidential and open 24/7/365. You don't have to be suicidal: 988 says its counselors also help with emotional distress, or if you “just need someone to talk to.” Text and chat work in Spanish, and calls have interpreters in more than 240 languages (SAMHSA (opens in a new tab)). People who are Deaf or hard of hearing can dial 988 from a videophone to reach counselors who sign in ASL, or use 711 then 988 (opens in a new tab).
• Crisis Text Line (opens in a new tab). Text HOME to 741741 to reach a trained volunteer crisis counselor, free and 24/7. In Spanish (opens in a new tab), text AYUDA to 741741.
• NYC 988 (opens in a new tab) (formerly NYC Well). New York City's part of the 988 network, with counseling and peer support by phone, text or chat, and interpreters in more than 200 languages. The city's health department told the City Council in 2025 that callers are never asked about immigration status (opens in a new tab).
• 911. Call 911 for any emergency. In the five boroughs you can text 911 (opens in a new tab) if you can't safely call, but the city says to always call if you can.

Peer support groups

Peer groups bring together people who have lived through a similar loss. Many are free.

• The Compassionate Friends (opens in a new tab): free peer support after the death of a child at any age, from any cause, for parents, grandparents and siblings. “There is never a charge to attend a TCF meeting.” Adult siblings are welcome at every chapter, and there are live online chats and private Facebook groups. Call the National Office at 877-969-0010 for a referral to the nearest chapter and a bereavement packet at no charge.
• Bereaved Parents of the USA (opens in a new tab): volunteer-run chapters for parents, siblings and grandparents after a child's death, including a few chapters just for siblings. Contact the chapter leader for meeting details.
• GriefShare (opens in a new tab) (Christian, faith-based): weekly groups, mostly at churches and also online, that use a video, discussion and workbook. GriefShare says the cost for most groups ranges from free to about $25 for the workbook. A Spanish site is available.
• COPE Sibling Support Groups (opens in a new tab) (New York City and Long Island): free groups for adults whose brother or sister died, led by licensed clinicians, in person or virtual, including a group for the newly bereaved. Joining starts with an intake form and a phone call.
• Our House NYC (opens in a new tab) (Manhattan): a grief support center that opened in late October 2025. It runs peer groups matched by age and by relationship to the person who died, including siblings, plus a family program with parallel groups for kids, teens and caregivers. Ask about cost during intake.
• SAMHIN Sahara Grief Support Group (opens in a new tab): a free group on Zoom, twice a month, for any South Asian person grieving a loved one, whatever the relationship or time since the loss.

Grief counseling and therapy

A counselor or therapist can help when grief feels too heavy to carry alone, or when it gets in the way of daily life for a long time. The National Institute of Mental Health (opens in a new tab) suggests these ways to find one:

1. Your primary care provider can screen you and refer you to a mental health professional.
2. Your health insurance can tell you which local providers are covered.
3. An employee assistance program (EAP) at work is a free, confidential service that can help with grief and trauma. Ask human resources if you have one.
4. FindTreatment.gov (opens in a new tab) is SAMHSA's locator for mental health services. SAMHSA's National Helpline (opens in a new tab), 1-800-662-4357, is a free, confidential treatment referral service, open 24/7 in English and Spanish.
5. Your school or college, if you are a student, may offer counseling.

If cost is a worry, the National Institute on Aging (opens in a new tab) suggests asking providers about a sliding-fee scale. It also notes that hospices can offer bereavement support to families even if hospice care was not used before the death.

When you call, NIMH suggests asking: What experience do you have with grief like mine? How do you usually help? How long might it take? Do you take my insurance? For signs that grief needs more help, see when grief doesn't ease.

Support for grieving children and teens

• Dougy Center program finder (opens in a new tab): search by ZIP code for grief support near you. The Dougy Center also shares free tip sheets for kids, teens, young adults and caregivers, some in Spanish.
• NACG Find Support (opens in a new tab): the National Alliance for Children's Grief directory of support centers, camps, counselors and virtual programs. The directory is free; each program sets its own fees.
• Comfort Zone Camp (opens in a new tab): free weekend overnight grief camps for ages 7 to 17 (18 if still in high school), with a camp in New Jersey. It also runs free virtual support groups (opens in a new tab) for kids 10 to 17, young adults and parents.
• Experience Camps (opens in a new tab): no-cost summer camps for kids whose parent, sibling or primary caregiver died, mostly for grades 4 to 12. Camps near New York City include ones in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Maryland.
• The Jewish Board Loss and Bereavement Program (opens in a new tab) (New York City): free groups, usually 10 to 12 weeks, for children and teens ages 3 to 18, plus groups for caregivers. Groups meet at schools across the boroughs and on Zoom. Phone 212-632-4692.
• Camp COPE (opens in a new tab): a free weekend grief camp for ages 7 to 17, held in the Poconos in Pennsylvania.
• For teachers and school staff: the Coalition to Support Grieving Students (opens in a new tab) offers free video modules on supporting grieving students.

Our guides to helping a child grieve a sibling and supporting a grieving teen explain what to look for and when to reach out.

Faith and community support

Many people find comfort in their faith community, in prayer or in time with others who share their beliefs, as the National Institute on Aging (opens in a new tab) notes. A trusted imam, pastor, rabbi, priest or other faith leader can be a good first call.

• The Family & Youth Institute Grief Support Toolkit (opens in a new tab): a free online toolkit grounded in Islamic values, with guidance for adults, children and young adults.
• Muslim Therapist Directory (opens in a new tab): a directory of Muslim mental health professionals, including therapists in Queens and Brooklyn. Each therapist sets their own fees.
• SAMHIN HelpLine (opens in a new tab): a free, confidential helpline for South Asian individuals and families, at 888-581-3230, 10 am to 7 pm Eastern, every day. Staff offer support, information and referrals to culturally competent clinicians. It is not a crisis line; in a crisis, call or text 988.
• GriefShare (listed above) is Christian and church-based.

Online communities

If you can't get to a meeting, or you want to talk at night from home:

• The Compassionate Friends runs weekly live online chats with trained monitors who are bereaved themselves, and private Facebook groups, including one for sibling loss (Family Support (opens in a new tab)).
• Comfort Zone Camp and the SAMHIN Sahara group meet online.
• Many therapists offer sessions by video. Ask when you call.

What you can do today

• Save 988 in your phone, and share it with someone else in your family.
• Pick one kind of support from this page that fits you: a group, a counselor, a helpline or a camp.
• Make one call, send one email or fill in one intake form. You can stop there for today.
• Print the contacts sheet above and put it somewhere easy to find.
• If you lost a brother or sister, read Losing a Sibling. If the death was a drowning, read Grief After a Drowning.